Memorable Mints

Here’s an idea to help you appreciate the value of manual labor. Reading time 2:15

The dichotomy was strident: a pristine well-polished, manicured politician vs. a grimy, scrappy dirty-finger nailed coal miner. And the leader is? Yep you guessed it – the coal miner.

Even John F. Kennedy –the well manicured politician—learned something about emotional intelligence in particular and personal leadership in general from that coal miner — a lesson that all leaders need to heed:

Don’t judge a book by its cover.

It happened during the 1960 presidential campaign. Kennedy met the coal miner one day during a campaign swing in West Virginia.

Kennedy wore his $1,000 suit and a $100 haircut . The coal miner wore ragged overalls and coal dust smudges on his face that could not cover the wrinkles of working in the mines all his life. Continue reading →

Here’s an idea to help you see more than is evident. Reading time: 3:28.

“Grrrrrrrr!” The guttural sound exploded out of the karate expert’s throat like the blast of a bullet as he smashed a pile of cement blocks with his hand. The grunt– “Grrrrrr!”–sounded like the robed warrior was either trying to stimulate his courage or intimidate his competition.

But discerning leaders know that grunting karate expert was in fact doing something more extraordinary than ordinary intimidation or grandstanding.

After all, the body has more strength when the lungs are devoid of air. So his Grunt Work of another kind bolstered his mighty blow that shattered the stack of cement blocks in stunning fashion.

How counter intuitive! It seems to me that your body would be stronger with life-sustaining air in the lungs.

But then again, the most effective leaders I have known are counter-intuitive. In fact, their insight is more critical than their sight.

And with that insight, counter-intuitive leaders discern more meaning into the actions of others than simply what they see.